Nicolas de Fer (1646-1720) was a cartographer, a publisher and Royal Geographer in France. He was quite prolific, producing more than 600 maps including atlases, wall maps and sheet maps. In fact, he was able to publish three major atlases within a five-year span between 1700 and 1705. Much of his work includes maps of France and Europe. However, he is well known for his ornate decoration rather than accurate depictions. He was succeeded by his sons-in-law, J. F. Benard and G. Danet. His best known works include: “Costes de France” (1690), “Liége etc.” (1693), “Introduction á la Fortification” (1693), “Atlas Royal” (1695, 1699-1702), “Petit Atlas” (1697), “Atlas Curieux” (1700-1705), “Atlas ou Recueil de Cartes Géog.” (1709-22), “Introduction á la Géog.” (1717), “Californie” (1720) (Tooley, “Tooley’s Dictionary of Mapmakers,” 206; Moreland and Bannister, 130; Portinaro and Knirsch, 314).

Originally, this map was first issued in 1699. It was reissued in 1705 without any changes and again issued in 1717, this time with a new imprint including publication information. According to McLaughlin and Mayo, there are a total of six different states of the map starting with 1699 and ending in 1742 (55, entry 127). In this particular map, California is shown as an island, a common occurrence despite the fact that exploration information from Jesuit Father Kino revealed that California was a peninsula in 1705 (Tooley, “California as an Island,” 61; Wheat, 66; Wagner, 324).